A photographer's field list for planning a backroad route

What to take away

• Work out which way each overlook faces before you plan the day around it.
• Roadside kiosks often carry current conditions, which is worth a stop at the entrance.
• A gravel route in soft light is slower than the same route in the middle of the day. Budget for that.
• Carry the camera where you can reach it. Most missed pictures are packing failures.

Photographing a backroad is a scheduling problem more than a technical one. The subject is fixed, the light moves, and the road decides how fast you can respond. Solve the schedule and the pictures follow.

Face the overlook before you plan around it

An overlook at the end of a paved spur is one of the easiest photographic wins on any trip, provided you arrive when it faces the light you want. The BLM's page for the Needles Overlook Interpretive Site in Utah describes a viewpoint over the Needles district of Canyonlands National Park, lists photography among its activities, and gives the access clearly: drive 32 miles south from Moab, turn west on the Canyon Rims Road, then 17 miles west on that paved road to the overlook at the end of the pavement.

Roughly fifty miles from town on pavement is a straightforward morning or evening trip. Work out the direction you will be shooting, then pick the end of the day that suits it, rather than arriving at whatever hour the driving happened to deliver you.

Read the kiosk at the entrance

Some byways post information where you join them, which is a useful first stop for both conditions and subject matter. The BLM's page for the Red Gulch and Alkali Back Country Byway in Wyoming describes a 32 mile drive on improved gravel and dirt roads through the foothills of the Bighorn Mountains, and notes a National Back Country Byway kiosk near each of the two entrances providing historical information about the route as well as road conditions.

The same page mentions hoodoos carved by wind, and steep rugged canyons cut into the mountains along the route. It also states that access into Trapper Canyon is very difficult and that permission to cross privately owned land is necessary, which is exactly the kind of detail that stops a photographic detour from becoming a trespass.

The schedule, not the kit

• Choose one subject per end of the day and drive to it deliberately.
• Allow half again as long as the mileage suggests on gravel in low light.
• Scout in the afternoon, shoot the following morning, if you are staying two nights.
• Keep the camera in the cabin, not in the back, so a roadside stop takes seconds.
• Stop only where you can get fully off the traveled surface.

Dust, glare and the middle of the day

Midday on a light colored gravel road is hard on both photographs and sensors. Use it for driving, for detail work in shade, and for interiors. Change lenses inside the vehicle with the windows closed, and keep a blower somewhere you can reach without unpacking.

Where to go next

The order in which a backroad plan gets built, starting with which routes are open at all, is in the backroad itinerary process. For the different problem of shooting around opening hours on historic routes, see the historic route field list.

Common questions

Is a tripod worth carrying on a driving trip? A small one, yes, for dusk and interiors. A large one usually stays in the vehicle after day two.

How do I plan for direction of light without visiting first? Read the access description. A road running west to an overlook usually means an east facing view, and the site page normally gives enough to work it out.

Should I shoot from the road? Only from a proper turnout, fully clear of the surface. Blind corners and crests are where photographers get hit.

What about drones? Check the specific unit and site first. Restrictions vary, and some areas prohibit them outright.